"I had succeeded in weight loss many times prior I could just never maintain," Lynch said. "So my mindset was this is my final stop, this is what I want to do. No more going backwards, only forwards."

Lynch had bariatric surgery nine months ago and has lost 93 pounds.

The surgery is for those with a body mass index of more than 40 or have serious medical conditions.

"For those patients who are that over their healthy weight really not much has proven effective over the long term for improving their health and reducing their weight, except for bariatric surgery," said Dr. Joshua Alley, director of bariatric surgery at Guthrie Clinic.

But opting for bariatric surgery isn't for everyone. Dr. Alley spends a lot of his time at seminars clearing up any misconceptions.

"They may think of this as a quick fix and really what it is, is a chance to re-do your weight," Dr. Alley said, "To go back and do it over again with the understanding that the second time around, you have to do things differently in order to get a different result."

The Guthrie Weight Loss Center program has had a 70 percent success rate in patients keeping the weight off since the program started 18 months ago.

"Bariatric surgery actually changes the fundamental problem, that we consume many more calories than we burn and our nutrition isn't very good at the same time," Dr. Alley said.

It's what you do after recovery that leads to long term weight loss.

"Now I can just enjoy everything that I'm doing," Lynch said, "The food doesn't control me, the exercise doesn't control me. Dr. Alley gave me back that control."

According to the Canadian Cardiovascular Congress, weight loss and better health can improve certain genes mothers pass on to their children.

"My 9 year old, she loves basketball, and I can get out there and play basketball and show them yes I really was an athlete," Lynch said, "I was only telling them before, I could never show them."

Dr. Alley's next free informational seminar will be at Guthrie Medical in Vestal on Feb. 21 at 6 p.m.